Thumri () is a vocal Music genre or style of Indian music.
The text is romantic or devotional in nature, the lyrics are usually in Awadhi language and Brij Bhasha.
Thumri is also used as a generic name for some other, even lighter, forms such as Dadra, Hori, Kajari, Sawani, Jhoola music, and Chaiti, even though each of them has their own structure and content — either lyrical or musical or both—and so the exposition of these forms vary. Like Indian classical music itself, some of these forms have their origin in folk literature and music.
Thumari being a popular form of Indian light classical music, characterized by tenderness and themes of love, separation, or union. It is distinct from folk music and the more masculine dhrupad and Khyal styles. One theory attributes its origin to the court of Wajid Ali Shah of Oudh State. However, this causal explanation overlooks the continuous evolution of Indian classical music. Thumari's development is best understood within the broader context of India's musical traditions. Thumari is considered an evolution of dhruvas mentioned in Bharata's Natya Shastra. Specifically, it is linked to the prasadiki or prasadini dhruva, associated with Sringara and characterized by colorful delight ( rangaraga) and happiness ( prasada). Bharata recommends madhyalaya (medium tempo) for this type of dhruva.
Key Characteristics
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Strong emphasis on poetic content.
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Themes primarily focused on Sringara rasa (romantic love), sometimes with dual spiritual and mundane meanings.
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Lyrical form due to the limited range of Raga and extensive elaboration.
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Emphasis on diversity rather than unity in melodic patterns.
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Requires a specialized vocal quality.
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Historically associated with the Kathak dance style, which initially led to a lower social status for its performers.
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Distinct talas (rhythmic cycles).
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Embellishments are primarily tonal-verbal, unlike the purely tonal embellishments of orthodox classical music.
Structure
As in
khayal, thumri has two parts, the
sthayi and the
antara. It favours
tala-s such as
Deepchandi,
Roopak,
Addha, and
Punjabi. These
tala-s are characterized by a special lilt, nearly absent in the
tala-s used in
khayal.
Thumri compositions are mostly in
raga-s such as
Kafi,
Khamaj,
Jogiya,
Bhairavi,
Pilu and
Pahadi. A common feature of these and other such
raga-s is the free movement they allow the artist, since they do not depend for their identity on rigidly formulated tonal sequences, irrespective of the compositions involved. In fact, one may say that they have a built-in provision for mixing
raga-s or for moving out of the
raga actually presented in order to add colour to the proceedings.
Origins
The origins of Thumri can be traced back to the time of
Jayadeva,
Ramanuja, and
Ramanand. It reached its peak popularity during the era of
Shri Chaitanya (circa 16th century AD), whose
Nagar Kirtan (Hare Krishna Hare Rama) stirred the masses into emotional ecstasies. The evolution of Thumri was inspired by the
Vaishnavism sect, especially the devotion to Krishna, which expressed divine love. Later, the philosophies of Vaishnavism and Sufism played a key role in shaping both Thumri and Kathak. The Thumri style of singing primarily developed from festival and seasonal folk songs such as Holi, Chaiti, Sawan, Kajri, and Dadra, originating from eastern Uttar Pradesh.
A mention of Thumri is found in the 19th century, with a link to the classical dance form Kathak. This was the bandish ki thumri or bol-baant and it found great patronage and evolved mostly in Lucknow in the court of nawab Wajid Ali Shah.
Thumri and khayal
Unlike the
Khyal, which pays meticulous attention to unfolding a raga, thumri restricts itself to expressing the countless hues of shringar by combining melody and words. The contours of a khayal are most definitely broader and fluid. Thus, a khayal singer is capable of encompassing and expressing a wide range of complex emotions. A thumri singer goes straight to the emotional core of a composition and evokes each yarn of amorous feeling, each strand of sensuous sentiment, with great discretion. Khayal aims at achieving poise and splendour; thumri is quicksilver in tone and ardently romantic in spirit. It needs a delicate heart, and a supple and soulful voice capable of expressing several shadings and colours of tones to bring out its beauty.
Noted thumri artists
Purab ang
Well-known artists of the 'purab ang' thumri' of the
Benaras gharana or Banaras gayaki include
Rasoolan Bai (1902–1974), Siddheshwari Devi (1908–1977),
Girija Devi (1929–2017), Mahadev Prasad Mishra (1906–1995) and Chhannulal Mishra (b. 1936).
Some other singers of thumri are Gauhar Jan (1873–1930), Begum Akhtar (1914–1974), Shobha Gurtu (1925–2004), Noor Jehan (1926–2000) and Nirmala Devi (1927-1996). The bol banao style has a slow tempo and is concluded by a laggi, a faster phase where the tabla player has some freedom of improvisation.
Another stalwart in the genre of thumri was Naina Devi (1917–1993), who was married to a royal family but later devoted her life to the singing of the song of Tawaifs. For a member of the royal family to take such a step in those days meant fighting countless social stigmas that had enough power to totally alienate someone from the society, but she had the support of her husband.
Classical thumri
Some
khyal singers took an interest in thumrī and sang it their own way, as in the case of Abdul Karim Khan,
Faiyaz Khan, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan,
Bhimsen Joshi,
Madhav Gudi, Rajan and Sajan Mishra, Barkat Ali Khan,
Jagdish Prasad and
Prabha Atre.
Today thumrī is sometimes sung at the end of khyal concerts as a concluding item.
Besides the tabla and the tanpura, other typical instruments in thumri are sarangi, harmonium and swarmandal. The reason as to why Thumri concludes an occasion is because it has a lasting emotional impact on the audience.
Lyrics
Thumrī singers pay considerable attention to the lyrics, though they may be difficult to follow in the ornamented enunciation. This is especially where the focus is on love, and many lyrics deal with separation or
viraha. Krishna's
ras leela or love play with
Radha and other gopis of
Vrindavan appear frequently. As an example, here are the lyrics of a thumrī composed by the medieval poet Lalan, celebrating Krishna's flute – how its tunes are driving Radha mad.
Braj or Vrindavan is where Krishna is indulging in this love play; Radha is the "Girl of Braj".
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- Ab naa baajaao Shyaam
- bansuriyaa naa baajaao Shyaam
- (e rii) Byaakul bhaayii Brajabaalaa
- bansuriyaa naa baajaao Shyaam
- nit merii galiin me aayo naa
- aayo to chhup ke rahiyo
- bansii ki teri sunaayo naa
- bansii jo sunaayo to suniye
- phir Shyaam hame aapnaayo naa
- aapnaayo to suniye Laalan
- phir chhoDo hame kahi jaaiyo naa
- bansuriyaa naa baajaao Shyaam
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- Enough! Now stop
- playing on your flute, dark lover
- this Braja girl's heart is aflutter,
- I ask you, please stop playing
- don't come to my lane all the time
- and if you have to come,
- just don't play your flute
- I am warning you now:
- if you have to play that flute
- then you'll have to be mine
- you won't be able to go elsewhere
- so will you please stop playing now?
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Further reading
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Dance in Thumri, by Projesh Banerji. Published by Abhinav Publications, 1986. .
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Thumri in Historical and Stylistic Perspectives, by Peter Lamarche Manuel. Published by Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1989. ..
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Thumri, Tradition & Trends, by Ramanlal Chhotalal Mehta, Published by Indian Musicological Society, 1990.
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Hindi Poetry in a Musical Genre: Thumri Lyrics, by Lalita Du Perron. Published by Routledge, 2007. .
External links
